Tips (especially golf) for Myrtle Beach?

The wife and I are going to Myrtle Beach next month. Staying at a fancy schmancy resort right on the ocean and I'm hoping to play some golf. I know they have a ton of world-class courses there as well as some for the average golfer. My game is solid enough to fit in at either. That said, I don't want to break the bank but would like to play a couple nice ones. (Man, I miss being a golf writer and playing for free!) Any suggestions?

Also, how about some tips on where to eat. I saw another thread here that suggested going into North Carolina. Any specific restaurants anyone could recommend. We both love seafood and BBQ. Thanks in advance!

 

The Dunes Golf & Beach Club is more pricey than just about any place in town, but I think it's fabulous. Conditioning is top-notch.

I can't think of very many courses anywhere that have a four-hole stretch as enjoyable as 10-11-12-13 at the Dunes. 10 is a little par-4 with a second-shot 9-iron or wedge to an elevated green on the other size of a hazard. 11 is a dogleg par 4 with one of the great second shots in the game. 12 is a par 3 of about 170 yards with nothing but savannah grass blowing in the breeze between you and the green, and 13 is a renowned U-shaped par 5. You can hit anything off the tee . . . 5-wood, 7-wood, but it's a heroic second shot over the water. There's a plaque at the tee commemorating a member of the Golf Writers Association of America making a 22 there (I think that's the number) without hitting a ball in the water.

Up north, there's a good course I've played with a par 6. You tee off in N.C. and finish in S.C.

Down south, in or near Pawleys Plantation, Caledonia and True Blue are well regarded.

I've been on 25 or so golf trips to MB and I've yet to find a restaurant that's worth recommending.

 

Marsh Harbor was a course in Calabash that was like that. On 17 or 18 ((I can't remember which) you teed off in NC, your ball crossed over into SC, then it landed back in NC. Like lots of courses around there, it was on leased land, so it's been closed quite awhile.

My only restaurant recommendation (other than, perhaps, a deep-fried pilgrimage to Calabash) is Frank's at Pawley's Island.

 

Thanks. A friend who used to live down that way suggested visiting Pawleys Plantation. Said it was quiet and not loaded with tourists. I looked at The Dunes.

 

One of my favorite local courses is like that. You tee off on No. 3 and if you can hit your ball 30-40 yards you're in the next county. I always think that stuff is cool!

 

MB National, both West and King's National are great. We play it every year on our annual golf trip.
Long Bay, a Nicklaus course is wonderful.
The World Tour is a lot of fun.

My biggest gripe with the courses down there is the help; Nothing but retired Yankees (NY-NJ/DC) who bring their Yankee attitude with them.

 

Thank you, sir!

 

I hear the Coastal Carolina cheer squad also serves as a welcoming committee for the area.

 

Ain't gonna help your question, but my great grandfather and his son (my grandad) owned a lot of
the property that's now Wrightsvile beach, Calabash, and part of Myrtle beach, mostly Calabash. True. Look up the Thomas Clan. They called it Tanglewood. If you golf there, you'll be on what used to be my family's property. People came a calling and he said "I'll throw in that beach land also". Stupid. stupid. And to add insult to injury, my grandfather was offered stock in Coke. 'That will never do anything".

 

I should add those are higher end courses.

Myrtlewood is nice too. There's the Palmetto and Pine Hills. I really like the Pametto course, it's a little cheaper, but there is NO signage on the course. No description of the holes on the card or at the tee boxes. I wouldn't try to play it by myself.
Aberdeen and Burning Ridge are good cheaper options too.

 

If you are going to play one course down there, play the Dunes. Fantastic course and tough as hell. The par 3th ninth hole is really good.
I played Grande Dunes before if officially opened and liked it. Caledonia is really good, probably my second favorite down there. I think the best place I found to eat was Sam Snead's grill and that was only once.

 

My only (non golf advice) is visiting the Bowery for a beer or five. This was the place Alabama cut its teeth back in the 1970s, and it still looks the same. Likely the only authentic thing in MB.

That being said barefoot landing and Broadway at the Beach are good places for shopping and avoiding the derelicts. Totally a tourist place, but clean and safe place to spend a few hours.